Patient coordination would get boost if Medicare changes how it pays docs

Expectations are high this year that Congress will finally reach an agreement to overhaul the way Medicare pays doctors for services, scrapping a method that's been the target of criticism for more than a decade. If that happens, experts say, Medicare beneficiaries will see changes in how health care is provided, with an increased emphasis on coordinated care and preventive services. "We're optimistic that there are a lot of opportunities in this to help make people healthier, more satisfied with their care and bring down costs," said Dr. Joseph Craft III, a cardiologist at Mercy Clinic Heart and Vascular and president of the St. Louis Metropolitan Medical Society.